The author and cook, Heather

A Pickle Plate for Everyone

Deep Run Roots

When you're a southern gardener, sometimes you end up with way more product than you can use fresh. I planted six okra plants this year, and we could probably have eaten okra with our dinner at least twice a week all summer, once it started really producing. So why not make some pickles?

This recipe from Deep Run Roots is a fermented pickle, not a vinegar pickle. All it takes is water, salt, vegetables, and lots of time. The important part is the ratio of salt to water (and vegetables.) The salt helps keep the microbes you don't want from growing, and keeping your vegetables under the salted water keeps air from depositing new ones on the vegetables.

One thing I would do differently for this recipe, though, would be to cut the jalapeño in half, if you want any sort of spice. Leaving it intact, I didn't get any flavor from it in the other vegetables. You can also let this ferment as long as you'd like; the temperature in your house can affect how long it takes to ferment. Give the top a skim and taste the vegetables every so often, and when it tastes good to you, it's done. I let these go for almost a week, but have fermented cucumbers for several weeks before.

If you've never tried fermenting anything, give it a try! It can be little scary at first, but it opens up a new world of flavor.

#pickledokra #fermentation #pickledcorn #pickledvegetables #fermentedpickles

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